Photo/Illutration The Kawamura Memorial DIC Museum of Art in Sakura, Chiba Prefecture. A sculpture by U.S. painter and sculptor Frank Stella stands near the entrance. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

The owner of a museum in Chiba Prefecture known for its collection of postwar U.S. abstract paintings is hoping to downsize and relocate it to Tokyo to improve operations.

DIC Corp., a Tokyo-based manufacturer of printing inks, pigments and resins, announced plans to review operations of the Kawamura Memorial DIC Museum of Art, which is currently losing money, on Aug. 27.

It plans to reach a conclusion by December and close the museum to visitors from late January.

DIC will consider selling some paintings to improve the museum's balance sheet.

The company said it has not ruled out the possibility of halting the museum’s operations if its turnaround plan is deemed economically unfeasible.

The museum opened on the sprawling site home to the company's research arm in Sakura, Chiba Prefecture, in 1990.

Its collection includes paintings by U.S. abstract artists Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko and Frank Stella in addition to European masters Claude Monet and Pablo Picasso.

The museum's 384 paintings were worth 11.2 billion yen ($77.3 million) in book value as of June.

The facility also features a garden of about 100,000 square meters.

Even with its beautiful greenery and works of legendary artists, the museum fell on hard times partly because of its location. It is about 80 minutes by train and bus from Tokyo.

Related News